A Boy and A Sword

A Boy and A Sword
“Behold,
The Land of the Mighty
is in bloody strife and turmoil.
“Hear the tides of the godless Saxons,
bringing death and fire.
Hear the silent supplication
of our dead.
“Where are our brave warriors
of the shining helms,
To free us
from pain and shackles?
“Our tears and entreaties
To restore our pride and dignity remain
unheeded.
Why do you mock our prayers, O Lord,
With only a beardless boy
and a sword
As our protectors?”
—Prayers Answered,
from the Book of Heroes.

My name is Kay, son of Sir Ector and older brother of Arthur. You may have heard this story before in tales passed down from others. Let me tell you our story because I was there. I lived it. This is the story of a boy and a sword.

As young boys, we dreamed of becoming knights to fight against the invasion of Logres or Britain, our home by the evil Saxons. Arthur and I trained every day with our father and the others knights. We learned the skills that a knight needs to know such as horsemanship, to hunt in the forest and of course to fight. We learned different weapons- the mace, the javelin, the ax and the sword. Arthur served as my squire as he learned the art and skills of being a knight when I became a knight.

I remember that day very well. That day I learned that 15-year-old Arthur was not my real brother but my foster brother. We had been invited to a tournament where all the knights of the region would compete and test their skills against each other. This would be my first tournament since being made a knight. Father, Arthur and I rose early before sunrise to prepare ourselves and took a leisurely ride into the village that morning. As we approached, I realized that I had left my sword and instructed Arthur to quickly return home to retrieve it for me. When he returned with the sword, we immediately realized that this was not my sword. Father inquired of Arthur how he came by the sword. He said, “When I returned home, I was locked out and couldn’t get back in. I then remembered the sword in the stone in the square so I rode hard and fast to get it. So, Father, I borrowed that sword for Kay to use. I’m sorry, Father. ”
Father was speechless at hearing Arthur’s explanation. He then said, “You are the true king of Logres and the Britains.” Father proceeded, “Arthur, your true father was Uther Pendragon, the king. When you were born, the sorcerer, Myrddin, had a pact with King Uther that he would take you and provide protection for you. He prophesied that when Uther died then all the nobles would then fight to be king and your life would be in danger. So he delivered you to me to raised as my own son until that day that you would become king. Myrddin placed a spell on this sword, placed it in the stone with a proclamation that whoever pulled the sword from the stone would be king of all Logres and the Britains.”

Arthur and I just stood there looking at each other for a moment. We could not believe this story but it was our father that told the story. He was known as one of the most trustworthy men of the times. So, from that day forward, my brother Arthur was known as King of Logres and instead of him serving me, I then became one of his knights, the Knights of the Round Table. We fought many a battle against the Saxons side by side and drove them back from our lands. Then, for a time there was peace and prosperity in all of Logres. Arthur became a legend in his own time. All of this because of a boy and a sword.